Lin Sheng-bin / 林盛彬
Cónsul de PPdM - Taipei
Lin Sheng-bin (b.1957)received his PhD in Spanish Literature from the University Complutense of Madrid and now is a professor at Tamkang University. His publications of poetry include The War (戰事), The Family Genealogy (家譜), The Wind blows from my deep heart (風從心的深處吹起), Contemplate and Meditate (觀與冥想), The blowing wind and the trembling heart (風動與心動) and others.
e-mail:lin.shengbin@gmail.com
In Transit / 過境
The world is small in the waiting room of the airport
when the time board collects
the cities from various corners
and people weave in front of my eyes
the pattern of foreign colors of hair and skin
may be we’ll board the same plane
then at some point like protruding branches
we’ll stretch out toward our own skies
but please don’t forget
we all spring from the great trunk of the earth
While we board our plane
they might be loading missiles and supplies
when we chatter
to shorten the distance between two foreign minds
there might be numerous fighter bombers waiting to soar
to transport the most beautiful and youthful
firewood to be burned in the darkest
slaughterhouse, the last terrified heartbeats
Maybe it’s more proper to keep our silence
maybe the next time we meet
we will have another closer yet longer confrontation
trying our best to let each other’s boiling blood
re-evaluate the weight and structure of humanity
At this moment we are waiting at the airport
to fly over the not-long yet not-short life
we share much of the same fate
so please give me some joyful talk
and lift the card from the long-covered face
before we reach the next parting
we’d better fill up the uncrossable swamp
which is all around our hearts
(Translated by William Marr)
The Beginning of Spring / 立春
I know you will not easily let it go
Like a wild goose sailing on a distant journey
Never to return
I know you are in distress
But you bear it quietly
Here, your veins take root
Their tentacles holding every inch of the land tight
Whether fertile or barren
In weather fair or foul
Things do not always turn out as one wishes
Yet hope remains the best fertilizer for the soul
Perhaps you too have thought of moving elsewhere
Yet you are deeply attached
Attached to what belonged to our ancestors
What now belongs to us
What in the future will still belong to our descendants-
The land
This land
Where our ancestors have tilled, have suffered and have spent lonely years
Have taught you to quietly bear all the miseries
Awaiting that moment when this once barren, war-stricken and weather-beaten
Place will turn into a haven of peace and beauty
Awaiting, perhaps in vain, despite a lifelong devotion
The arrival of
Spring
Yet when seeds are sown
Hope will germinate in the heart
Even if spring comes not
The sprouts of spring have to be transplanted with blood and sweat
Now that Great Cold is over and insects are waking
Oh! Orphans of Asia
We must rise before the Earth does
And with our thickly calloused hands
Sprinkle the seeds
Upon our eternal haven
(translated by Lisa Lai-ming WONG黃麗明)
The book of genealogy / 家譜
Suddenly,
A breath of wind caresses
The covor of the book
Lifting it gently
Catching my attention
I look at it.
On the front page,
I see my name
Not prominent
Like sand, dust or nothing.
I browse through the book
A profusion of words
Spreading before me
Having no beginning
No ending
On pages without numbers.
I search carefully
And find only prehistoric names
Peking man, Neanderthal man, Cro-Magnon …..
I retreat thru the pages,
Looking in vain,
Still searching
The heavy book
One word is meaningful
Homesickness.
(Translated by Charles Shuttleworth, MBE and Tu Tung-Men)